The Kauai Plantation Railway is a heritage railroad on the island of Kauai in Hawaii. Built in 2006 and opened in January 2007, the railroad operates on a long track within the Kilohana Plantation and offers passenger rides around the plantation, pulled by a 1940s diesel locomotive. It was the first new railroad to be built on the Hawaiian islands in 100 years. The railway was designed and built as part of a larger project to bring tourists to the Kilohana Plantation, and the train travels through a variety of agricultural areas intended to showcase the variety of agriculture in Hawaii. Initial plans called for two antique steam locomotives from Oahu to pull trains, but due to the significant cost of restoration, vintage diesel locomotives bought from the Philippines are used instead. History Previous railroads on Kauai The first railroad on Kauai opened in 1881. Plantations on the island soon developed a network of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge railways which transported harvested sugarcane for processing and export. The last of these was replaced by truck transport in 1959. Formation and construction The Kilohana Plantation is centered on a mansion originally built for Hawaiian business magnate Gaylord Wilcox in 1935. The property was taken over by Fred Atkins in 1986, establishing a restaurant and making the mansion available for events. This business model was a success until Hurricane Iniki struck the island in 1992. The plantation was shut down for a year, and business did not return at similar levels when it reopened. Atkins decided to change his business model in 2003, adding significant and varied agriculture within the plantation's land to demonstrate the techniques of smaller farmers. As part of the change in business model, Atkins and the other owners of the Kilohana Plantation announced plans to construct a new long heritage railroad in January 2004, initially planning to use steam locomotives which formerly operated on Oahu. The island's planning commission approved the project in March 2004. Per a report in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, at the start of construction, "Nobody in the crew knew how to build a train track", but this was solved by visits from a consultant from the U.S. mainland who advised on construction techniques. Following the installation of 7,920 ties, 1,056 rails, and 31,680 spikes, over eight months in 2006, it opened to the public in January 2007. The planned steam locomotives were